Passing Thoughts In Life's Rearview Mirror

The ISSUE That Was - June

Editor's Note: Thomas's commentary is in blue and Marcie's is in purple.

Immigration reform topped the month's headlines. It was the only real issue anyone was discussing. Sure the civil war in Gaza; Harry Reid calling General Peter Pace incompetent; the gas station riots in Iran; speculation about a possible Supreme Court retirement, all were big issues as well, but not like the immigration debate. This debate raged on for five weeks and it came to it's climactic demise on June 28th in a 46-53 cloture vote. It is dead, and hopefully will not return anytime soon. We do acknowledge the necessity of reform, but not in such an underhanded, backdoor, jam-down fashion. That was inappropriate for the Senate to even try this, with the process they used. But we would be remiss in our duties if we did not give a quick round up of winners and losers in this debate. Of course, we will start with the winners ...

We, the People

Each and every man and woman who called up the Senate over the course of the last five weeks carried the day. We beat this back. We raised enough awareness and made enough noise that the 53 Senators voted against cloture because they got the message. America didn't want this bill. It was bad from the get-go, and even with the proposed amendments it wasn't looking any better. The Senators can sniffle at talk radio, and fuss about needing "to do something about that," but they won't. They can't. Again, we stood up to this bill, and we'll stand up to them if they decide to go the route of the Fairness Doctrine. An empowered populace can't be dissuaded from doing what they know is right, and that's why this bill died. WE fought to kill it each and every day.

The Heroes In the Senate

We can practically recite them in our sleep -- Sessions, DeMint, Cornyn, Hutchison, Dorgan -- and they are not the only ones. These were the people against this bill from the start, and never once did they give up the fight. They stayed in it for all twelve rounds, and took a beating from their own party at times. Senator Dorgan will especially be remembered by his party for putting the amendment in the bill that dealt it it's first mortal wound, and forced Majority Leader Reid to pull the bill from the floor. These people deserve more thanks than this nation may be able to muster, but it would be a good idea to call them and thank them. Were it not for the concerted effort of ourselves in conjunction with these people, this bill would have passed and been signed in the 48 hours they were hoping to do the jam-down in. That did not happen, and we believe the Congress now knows that when we speak, we had best be listened to.

The Zeroes In the Senate

There were a few of these people who just didn't want to be forthright with their constituents. These people decided to play the politics game and it didn't make a lot of us happy. Jim Webb, (D-VA) was one of those people that in the final hours before it was to be killed, he refused to give an answer one way or another where he stood. We knew his amendment had died the day before, but he just wouldn't come clean. In the end he did, but with such an important vote coming up, the public has a right to know which way their elected representatives will vote. National Review called them the "Amnesty 8," eight senators who just continued to sit and wouldn't get off the pot. It's our business and in our best interests to know where these people stand. While many may be patting these people on the back, we don't share the sentiment. We don't congratulate people who suddenly saw which way the wind was blowing. They should be ashamed of playing the game of politics; making your choice based on the way the vote's going instead of voting their convictions.

Quack, Quack

Talk about a lame duck. This Administration now has a power vacuum at its heart, and it's all due to the President. While we give the man the respect he deserves because of his office, there is admonishment that is equally due. This nation is at war, and that should be the number one issue for the President to deal with. Instead, he decided that this -- amnesty for millions of illegal aliens -- was an all-important issue, and that the public was to be shut out of any substantive portion of debate. He wanted this bill rammed through quickly and as quietly as possible. Does this mean the marriage is effectively over for him? Almost. He will desperately need his base in September when General Petreus gives his progress report if we are to win this war. Should a Supreme Court vacancy occur, he will need us then, as well. But as for trusting and supporting the Administration, I do not think that is possible any longer. Like his water-carriers, the President has done this to himself, and he may have done himself irreparable damage. At the very least, the public will not give him the leeway wit once did on issues he brings up.

The Party That Represents Their Mascot

They didn't take the ass for no reason, and what asses they were in this debate. They didn't help themselves with this issue at all. They sat back and watched the conservatives win the day (even with the inter-party debate) and watched us take a couple Senators down a notch or two without breaking a sweat. Worse, because of their silence and their readiness to do the jam-down, they showed the nation that they are just as insincere about border enforcement and security as the President and his attack dogs. They'll never win the public's trust on immigration reform and it's because they don't care. While the Republicans were thinking about business interests, the Democrats were focused on one thing: turning twelve to twenty million illegal aliens into Democrat votes. They were looking to literally legalize a new base for themselves, and it's due to the fact that the nutter moonbats can't carry the day for them. The Democrats now have two strikes against them (the first being the idea we can withdraw from Iraq with no consequences). The people see them for what they are. The curtain is pulled back, and the Wizard is a silly old man with parlor tricks. The emperor has no clothes. They were willing to sell the nation down the river the same as the president and his waterboys were.

The Biggest Loser

Before his campaign started, John McCain had little chance of taking the nomination, and it was due in no small part to people like Thomas and I reminding people of how badly he has served this nation. At this point, there is no hope for him. He is done. He is finished. His attachment to this bill, and the fact he used his talking on the stump for this bill have cost him any chance he has at being the nominee for President It might have even have cost him his reelection chances for the Senate. People will not forget this, especially those of us who live in Arizona -- a border state -- and knowing he was willing to sell us down the river. If Senator McCain was willing to do the honorable thing, he should drop out of the race, and step down from the Senate before he is handed his hat and shown the door.

The Waterboys

The bottom-tier losers in this are the waterboys. Yeah, it's people like Michael Chertoff and Linda Chavez, but they'll see no real backlash. Chertoff knows he's not liked, and Linda Chavez had a brief moment of stupidity. No, the waterboys I'm referring to are Trent Lott, (R-MS) and Lindsey Graham, (R-SC). These two numbskulls decided to drop the veneer they keep up regularly, and they went after Americans opposed to this bill. They didn't do it in a sensible manner. They used invective and vitriol to show the nation the disdain they have for people who question them. These two are toast when the next election comes around (Graham faces reelection in 2008, and we're already hearing about those prepping up primary challengers for him in South Carolina). Trent Lott's slam towards talk radio didn't go unnoticed, and with talk of the Fairness Doctrine making a return, we have him to thank for another brain dead idea who's time has come and gone. These two couldn't be worse as senators or as Republicans, but America can do better by handing these two their walking papers.

All in all, the biggest winner was the nation because it avoided the bullet the Senate was forcing us to swallow. The biggest losers are self-explanatory. The President is among them, but so are some other politicians. This fiasco did not help them, but it did help the party. It unified us. To be precise, it unified the nation -- Republicans and Democrats came together to defeat this bill in the House of origin. That speaks volumes not only to the maturity of both sides, but the fact that we can work together, and it does not involve selling one's soul to the dark master, like John McCain is so fond of doing. Bipartisanship is a great thing, but not at the expense of one's convictions. We will get reform on our immigration system some day, but we can start right now by enforcing the laws. There is no need for bipartisan support there. The laws already exist. Maybe we should actually try to enforce them before declaring the whole system broken, and attempting to piecemeal a new bureaucratic mess in it's place.

He is a scholar of history, especially American history, and the United States Constitution. She has finished her undergrad studies, graduating with a BA in English and history and will move onto law school this fall where she will specialize in Constitutional Law. Together, Thomas and Marcie form the vanguard of conservative opinion at Hamilton, Madison, and Jay -- a blogging site devoted to advancing the conservative cause by challenging the liberal lies and deceit spread by the media, and espoused by the Left in general. Both are expert debaters, and have beaten many liberals into submission with their collective wit, and unmatched knowledge. The pair is married, and resides in Arizona.

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